Bitcoin in freefall hitting lowest price since Trump took office as leverage turns a macro wobble into a brutal cascade
Bitcoin fell round 8% on Feb. 3, briefly dropping the $73,000 degree.
A fast rebound took costs to $74,500 as of press time, dampening the intraday correction to five.8%. The decline marks the lowest price level in the President Donald Trump administration and the weakest degree since the November 2024 Presidential Election.
The selloff pushed Bitcoin as low as its March 2024 all-time high of $73,500, a degree that held by the early levels of the decline however in the end gave means below sustained promoting strain.
The transfer revived a cluster of help zones that merchants have monitored as important technical thresholds for practically a 12 months.
Macro risk-off drives crypto decrease
The crypto weak point is linked to broad risk-off sentiment throughout markets, sparked by Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair.
Warsh’s choice stoked issues about a extra hawkish coverage combine and tighter monetary circumstances, pressures that traditionally weigh on high-beta property, together with cryptocurrencies. A stronger greenback, which generally accompanies such expectations, compounds the headwind for digital property. The present greenback weak point, nevertheless, makes this decline much more painful.
Microsoft’s Azure progress disappointment added to the promoting strain, souring broader danger sentiment and triggering cross-asset contagion.
The AI commerce wobble demonstrated how crypto stays weak to spillover results from growth-sensitive expertise sectors, notably when positioning is stretched and liquidity is skinny.
Leverage unwind amplifies decline
CoinGlass knowledge reveals over $2.5 billion in Bitcoin liquidations in latest days, turning what started as a macro-driven selloff into a cascade of compelled promoting.
Thin weekend liquidity exacerbated the selloff that started at $84,000 on Saturday, in accordance with a Bitfinex notice.
The mixture of macro triggers and leverage unwinding created circumstances in which comparatively modest preliminary promoting strain may pressure far bigger strikes, as stop-losses and margin calls compounded the decline.
Additionally, institutional flows in 2026 have been uneven.
Exchange-traded fund (ETF) inflows, typically adopted by outflows throughout volatility episodes, counsel tactical rebalancing fairly than aggressive dip-buying, leaving costs uncovered as liquidation strain accelerates.
The absence of constant institutional demand meant there was no significant buffer when compelled promoting started.
Galaxy Digital analysis additionally famous that near-term catalysts seem scarce, with diminished odds of legislative progress on market construction performing as a narrative headwind.
Without clear constructive drivers on the horizon, merchants lack the conviction to step in aggressively throughout drawdowns.
Critical help and resistance ranges
Bitcoin now trades inside a tightly watched technical vary.
The $73,500 degree from 2024 and the Feb. 3 intraday low of $72,945 kind the fast help zone.
IG Markets identifies a broader help band between $73,581 and $76,703, an space related to prior cycle highs and 2025 lows that has been examined a number of occasions over the previous 12 months.
CryptoSlate additionally recognized a number of help and resistance ranges for 2026 in Akiba’s bear market analysis.
A day by day shut under this band would enhance the likelihood of follow-through promoting towards the subsequent help cluster between $72,757 and $71,725. If that zone fails to carry, the July 2024 peak of round $70,041 turns into the subsequent main draw back waypoint.
On the resistance aspect, Bitcoin’s reclamation of the 2024 all-time high of $73,500 signifies that consumers are keen to defend the latest breakdown degree. The April 2025 trough zone round $74,508 now acts as resistance after beforehand serving as help.
Above that, minor resistance sits at $78,300, with the November 2025 low of $80,620 and the psychological $80,000 degree forming the subsequent significant barrier.
Distinguishing bounce from restoration
A single-day rebound doesn’t represent a sturdy backside.
Historical patterns counsel that sustainable recoveries usually require at the very least two circumstances: repeated day by day closes above the $74,500 degree, changing the April 2025 reference zone from resistance to help, and proof that liquidation strain has pale following the $2.56 billion forced-selling wave.
Without these confirmations, rallies danger turning into dead-cat bounces into overhead resistance as sellers use power to exit positions.
ETF flows must stabilize past remoted inexperienced days, in keeping with the tactical fairly than aggressive institutional habits.
Two near-term eventualities
If Bitcoin holds the $73,000 to $73,445 help zone and reclaims $74,500, the trail of least resistance turns into a grind towards $78,300, then the $80,000 to $80,620 range.
This state of affairs requires each technical follow-through and the absence of new macroeconomic headwinds.
Alternatively, a day by day shut under the $73,581 decrease band will increase the percentages of continuation promoting into the $72,757 to $71,725 zone, with the $70,000 degree as the subsequent main psychological and technical waypoint.
This state of affairs turns into extra probably if liquidation strain stays elevated or if macro circumstances deteriorate additional.
Bitcoin’s decline under its 2024 all-time high after practically a 12 months of holding that degree as help constitutes a technical breakdown, shifting the burden of proof to consumers.
The mixture of macro risk-off sentiment, leverage unwinding, and tactical institutional flows created circumstances in which help ranges that had held for months gave means inside hours.
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